FAIR PLAY IN POKER: IS IT POSSIBLE?

Many people think that Poker is a game in which is necessary playing without human and moral values for obtaining the best result.

The stereotype of the poker player is a cynical figure, without emotions and always ready to take advantage of the weakness of the opponent.

While in other sports a determined fair play is required, even just for an unwritten principle, at the green table it's enough to follow the rules in a strict way and then you can destroy anyone without mercy.

Rather, it's better to do it as soon as possible, before it's the other to do it to us.

Is not a bad thing and not a fault, is simply in the game modes.

The Poker honor code doesn't allow mistakes and doesn't permit distractions: if you wrong, the responsibility is only yours!

But yet, I was able to find a nice episode of fair play in this game too.

I'm sure that there were many others, but this in particular caught my attention and I want to tell it to you.

2015, EPT Main Event in Barcelona.

Pascal Hartmann, a young German player, opens the game.

On his left, the Canadian Jiachen Gong immediately raises and 3-bets.

All the other players at the table fold and then Hartmann, thinking about his move, asks his opponent to count the stack.

At that moment, the misdeed happens.

Pickin'up the folded cards, the dealer inadvertently takes the Gong cards too, putting them in the muck.

The rule says that the responsibility in these cases is of the player who has not protected his cards and not of the dealer.

For resolving the situation, is called the tournament director, the Italian Luca Vivaldi.

He asks all the players to tell him privately what were the cards they had.

To recover the cards of Gong, however, it's necessary that no one of the players wrongs.

Unfortunately one of them is not able to remember his cards and the judge can't do anything else but declare closed the game of Gong.

But, at this point, the fantastic gesture of fair play of Hartmann arrives.

Instead of calling or raising to win the pot, the German chooses to fold, and is Gong to win the game, in the general amazement.

Hartmann then explained that he wanted to be honest and that he would anyway fold.

A choice that not many players would have done and that aroused the admiration of all the colleagues and the insiders that were in the room.

                                           Congratulations guy!

                   You have shown that also in POKER fair play exists.

                                           Really a great lesson!